Subject to extensive regulation on many aspects of their respective businesses, bankers and insurers must mobilize, both online and externally, significant human resources to comply with their legal obligations; Take responsibility by developing a culture of compliance

In mid-June, the firm Ernst & Young signaled the end of the game for the German leader in online payment Wirecard. Convinced of an accounting fraud at 1.9 billion euros, this FinTech saw 97% of its market capitalization go up in smoke after the bankruptcy of its holding company and the indictment of its CEO. A soap opera with serious consequences for fintechs: In addition to the possible distrust of investors and customers, the fall of Wirecard indeed brings grist to the mill of supporters of increased control of these players, who deplore the distortion between the rules imposed on the "historic" of banking and insurance and those of new entrants. When some are paralyzed by excessive compliance, they say, others often slip under the radar of regulators.

Charlotte Gaudin, expert in the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism, founded AML Factory, a technological platform which automates the compliance of companies. "To preserve their agility and speed, many start-ups choose to operate under a license from an approved player and de facto escape the control of the regulatory authority," she explains. Recently, the British neo-bank Revolut and its German competitor N26 have been singled out for the laxity of their security procedures. At the beginning of July, the French Banking Federation declared itself "concerned" by the increase in seizures for payment fraud, cybercriminals seeking to take advantage of the development of online services and the proliferation of information systems, their entanglement increasing the number of potential flaws.

Fines. Still, the “over-control” of traditional players does not shield them from any slippage. Banks, in particular, pay tens of millions of euros in fines each year for breaches of compliance risks: financial security (laundering, terrorist financing, corruption, compliance with embargoes), fraud, ethics (duty of advice, transparency, fair information of the client). They are also regularly fined for non-compliance with legal procedures. Charlotte Gaudin questions their mode of operation: “While companies are spending more and more on compliance, they have never been penalized so much because their processes are failing. " How to cure it ? By getting advice and support without "calling on an army of consultants, because it's the best way not to transfer the skill internally", she says, adding that "technological bricks are available" except that they “are not always interconnected”. “The transfer of expertise and the perfect knowledge of the models must be the norm in the projects, specifies Didier Alleaume, partner within the Financial Services hub of Grant Thornton. Failing that, we think it is appropriate to consider outsourcing”.

Having been fined or singled out by NGOs, the big banks are making a shift to restore their reputation, adopting the principles of “positive and responsible” compliance. To the legal prohibitions, the organizations thus add a set of standards or good practices freely designed and agreed. By thus materializing their social and societal responsibility (CSR), believes Paul de Leusse, boss of Orange Bank, “the banks adopt a logic of spirit of compliance or culture of compliance”.

As a symbol, the fintech Wirecard scandal highlights the shortcomings of the financial monitoring system